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3.4: Aspirated Stops in English

  • Page ID
    9643
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    Not all stops are pronounced the same way. Native speakers of English produce the voiceless stops [p, t, k] as aspirated in some environments, but unaspirated in other environments. This unit deals with the systematic, predictable environments in English where aspiration occurs on voiceless stops.
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    Check Yourself

    1. The following city names all contain the letter ‘t’ within the word. In which of them is the letter ‘t’ pronounced as [th]?

    • Victoria.
    • Ottawa.
    • Edmonton.

    2. The following words all contain the segment /k/. In which of them is it pronounced as the allophone [kh]?

    • Actually.
    • Accomplish.
    • Attic.

    3. The following words all contain the segment /p/. In which of them is it pronounced as the allophone [ph]?

    • Appearance.
    • Zipper.
    • Application.
    Answers

    This page titled 3.4: Aspirated Stops in English is shared under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Catherine Anderson (eCampusOntario) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.